This year marks the 30th anniversary of Suqian's establishment as a city. Over the past three decades, the towns and villages across Suqian have undergone transformative changes, evolving from muddy paths to paved roads, from single-crop agriculture to diversified industries, and from remote rural areas to charming townships. Every town in Sihong County is writing its own remarkable story of progress through dedicated effort.

The Sihong media team has launched a special series titled "Celebrating Three Decades: Town Revitalization," with reporters visiting all 19 towns and sub-districts across the county to uncover the unique highlights and characteristics of each locality. This series showcases the most vivid grassroots practices on Sihong's soil since Suqian's founding three decades ago. Today, we step into Weiying Town to see how fruit and vegetable cultivation has grown into a hundred-million-yuan industry.

Walking into the grape demonstration base at Qianying Community in Weiying Town, 60 mu of multi-span greenhouses are neatly arranged, with Sunshine Rose grapes hanging heavily from the vines, poised for a large-scale market debut in the near future. "We use only farmyard manure for our grapes. The soil has been well improved, giving the fruit a bright surface, firm texture, and good storage durability," said Chen Rui, the base's manager. To secure better prices, the base has built cold storage facilities, using preservation technology to delay market release and avoid peak-season competition. Chen told reporters that the yield is controlled at approximately 5,000 jin per mu, earning about 30,000 yuan per mu. In 2022, he chose Weiying Town for his grape base, attracted by the local government's strong support for agriculture and well-developed supporting infrastructure.

The grape base is just one facet of Weiying's fruit and vegetable sector. When it comes to local produce, watermelons are the first thing that comes to mind. Weiying has a long history of watermelon cultivation. Legend has it that during the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Cao stationed troops here and, to relieve his soldiers from the summer heat, brought watermelon seeds back from Chang'an to plant. From that time, watermelons have thrived here. In 2020, "Weiying Watermelon" received national geographical indication certification. Thanks to the unique sandy loam soil of the Xinan'gang area and ample sunlight, the watermelons boast a distinctive "sandy, sweet, and crisp" texture.

Technology has breathed new life into this traditional industry. Weiying's watermelons are grown using grafting techniques, where seedlings are grafted onto gourd or pumpkin roots to effectively prevent replanting diseases, allowing the same land to sustain continuous cultivation. The town's seedling nursery maintains stable orders of around 4 million seedlings annually, supplying not only local farmers but also markets in Nanjing, Shanghai, Yancheng, Lianyungang, and beyond. Currently, Weiying Town has over 10,000 mu of watermelon cultivation, with nearly 5,000 mu of core facility-based greenhouse farming. Annual production reaches close to 20,000 tons of premium melons, and the town's watermelon industry generates an average yearly income exceeding 80 million yuan, providing stable employment for more than 1,100 local residents.

"Our watermelons are shipped as far as Guangdong, and we still can't meet demand—we even help neighboring growers sell theirs," said Zhang Zhihong, head of the Guoyinghong Vegetable Family Farm in Weiying Town. "This is a watermelon town. The highland-grown melons have excellent quality, and many buyers come specifically to Weiying to pick up watermelons." The town has hosted the Watermelon Culture Festival for nine consecutive years, transforming watermelons from a simple agricultural product into a cultural brand. This initiative has woven the entire industrial chain together, from standardized planting and branded sales to agro-tourism experiences.

While watermelon serves as the cornerstone of Weiying's fruit and vegetable industry, the sector extends far beyond it. At the intelligent mushroom industrial park in Qianying Community, 35 smart climate-controlled units stand in neat rows, a striking new addition. This project, launched earlier this year, uses advanced growing pods to cultivate mushrooms. Inside, golden ear mushrooms grow thick and vibrant, layered abundantly on cultivation sticks in impressive health. "Traditional greenhouse mushroom cultivation is heavily influenced by climate and temperature, but these smart pods overcome external environmental constraints, allowing year-round production," said Li Shenghui, Party branch secretary of Qianying Community.

With the introduction of smart pods, mushroom cultivation is no longer limited by seasons, and growers can flexibly adjust varieties based on market conditions. Li gave reporters a breakdown of the economics: each pod holds 2,700 cultivation sticks, producing a crop of golden ear mushrooms every 20 days or so, with a net profit of approximately 2,000 yuan per pod per crop. Across all 35 pods, annual earnings reach about 1 million yuan, with products primarily sold to Shanghai, Suzhou, and other cities. "Qianying Community has traditionally been a fruit and vegetable growing area, and these smart pods have added a new growth driver to our industry," Li added.

Watermelons, grapes, and mushrooms form the mainstay of Weiying's fruit and vegetable industry. Beyond these, the planting base of Jiangsu Xiangrui Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd. features over a dozen fruit varieties, including cherries, kiwifruit, and blueberries, spread across a 150-mu park. The head of the company, Zhu Dexiang, is a native of Weiying who returned home after years of working elsewhere. In his view, the region's favorable land conditions and strong policy support make agriculture a promising venture. "Besides fresh fruit sales, the base plans to develop agritourism, farm visits, and educational programs to further extend the fruit and vegetable industry chain and make Weiying's fruit and vegetable town even better," Zhu said.

The diversified and distinctive development pattern of Weiying's fruit and vegetable industry owes much to the government's systematic planning and sustained investment. "In the development of Weiying's fruit and vegetable industry, provincial, municipal, and county governments have provided long-term, continuous support. Investment in infrastructure—including high-standard farmland, agricultural greenhouses, roads and irrigation channels, cold-chain storage, and agricultural service centers—has exceeded 100 million yuan," said Zhang Wei, director of the Rural Work Office of Weiying Town, Sihong County.

Currently, the town's total fruit and vegetable planting area approaches 20,000 mu, with an annual output of about 15,000 tons of premium produce and an annual production value exceeding 100 million yuan. Over 110 agricultural business entities are engaged in fruit and vegetable cultivation, creating an industrial layout characterized by "ecological orchards in the south, green vegetables and fruits in the center, and premium grain and oil crops in the north." Weiying Town continues to deepen its focus on specialty fruit and vegetable industries, winning market share through quality and building reputation through branding. The town is making its "fruit and vegetable town" identity even more prominent, ensuring that more residents share in the benefits of industrial development.